Monday, 19 September 2011

How is the Mise En Scene used in 'Monarch of the glen' to contrast representation of age?

The clip begins with the introduction of middle-aged men working in smart work wear and using tools of hard labour. The reason that you can tell they are middle aged is because the tools they are using are not tools that are readily available to younger people. Therefore this clip uses the tools as props to show that the men on the screen are older and more responsible as opposed to more youthful and inexperienced.


The clip then goes on to show two characters more casually dressed then the characters before, which may show a sense of youth. This clip therefore uses the costume of the characters to imply age on these characters. When the younger girl is asked to drive she acts as if she has passed her test but in reality has no idea and this asks the question that is she younger than she looks. When she crashes the car, she is then confronted by her headmaster and she cowers behind a father like figure. This shows a child like instinct and her body language shows youth rather than age.


The headmaster and the girl's father like figure, step into an office that looks quite old. This is because the style and interior which is made up of wooden paneling for walls and bare brick wall trimmings shows age rather than being a modern concept. It make the room feel as if it is a child free zone and much more of an adults office which causes the two characters to appear as older characters. This is backed up when whisky is served as the drink, being still from the bottle. Whisky is a drink that is not widely drunk by younger people and seems to reflect the tastes of the older generation. The fact that the bottle is on show in the room further suggests that the room is not allowing of children. This means that the setting and location used in this clip to imply an age on these characters. 


After some talking, the man is angry after being lied to realising the girl is only sixteen, even though she appears much older. The man's body language displays protective attitude towards the girl, and the girl goes to pack and leave. Whilst packing you see in her room, objects of youth such as a teddy bear, girl magazines and pink lanterns decorating the mirror. These props are used to imply the girl being quite young.


Finally the man who has previously been shown to be an older man, becomes sarcastic ands begins to playfully bicker with another land owner, and this shows a sense of immaturity and youthfulness, so for the first time in the clip, instead of a young and old divide, there is now a young, old and an in-between age divide. He uses body language to appear youthful as well as aged.


After checking, this document has 462 words, which is under the 500 limit.

1 comment:

  1. Great work, I see I need to stretch you a little further... you can improve your approach to this topic by going further than stating possible interpretations of mise en scene... you must go on to explain how the audience is being manipulated. Eg, yes, a teddy bear implies the girl is young, but more than that, she leaves it behind... The teddy bear is a universal signifier of innocence and childhood (Pooh, Paddington, Rupert the Bear etc)... in this way the audience is manipulated into feeling these qualities have also been left behind... make that kind of an observation and the examiner will decide you'll get an A no matter what comes next.

    Matt

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